The commercial desk reports on office leasing and investment, retail and hospitality assets, industrial and logistics space, and the data centre pipeline across Singapore and the wider region.
True Fitness and True Yoga in Singapore are set to close, with parent company Kontafarma China Holdings citing intense competition and rising customer acquisition costs. Insolvency practitioners have been provisionally appointed and creditors' voluntary winding-up will be proposed at an extraordinar
Global bond yields hit multi-year highs and Asian stocks tumbled on 11 Sep after Brent crude surged to a four-month high of US$109.97 a barrel, stoking inflation fears. The benchmark 10-year US Treasury yield climbed to 4.9708 per cent, its highest in three years, as markets priced in more central b
Singapore billionaires Raj Kumar and his son Kishin have acquired the Scotts Square retail mall in the Orchard Road area for S$310 million through a share purchase. The freehold mall has a gross floor area of 130,875 sq ft and a net leasable area of nearly 76,660 sq ft.
Microsoft plans to expand its data-centre capacity to roughly 38 gigawatts by 2032, more than triple its current 12GW, according to a Bloomberg News report. Only about 2GW of its existing capacity is dedicated to AI-specific chips, a share expected to rise to about a third of the 2032 target. The co
OpenAI has launched ChatGPT for Financial Services, a version of its AI model built for investment bankers and equity researchers. Developed with Morgan Stanley and Evercore, the product integrates datasets from LSEG, PitchBook and Daloopa, and is powered by the new GPT-6 Astra model.
PNB Holdings Corp. has set an initial reference price of P1.20 per share for its planned Sept. 25 listing by way of introduction, implying a market capitalisation of about P56.3 billion. The price is near the lower end of the P1.18-to-P1.89 valuation range from an independent fairness opinion.
The Light Rail Transit Authority has signed an agreement covering seven Villar Group properties needed for the Las Piñas Station of the LRT-1 Cavite Extension. Six lots are being donated to the government, while the seventh is covered by a right-of-way usage agreement. Access to the properties is ex
IBM and NASA have released an open-source AI model to help scientists analyse decades of lunar data. The model, trained on data from nine instruments across four NASA missions, can identify ice deposits and map craters with up to 23 per cent greater accuracy than existing methods.
Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the Dubai Financial Services Authority and Nasdaq Dubai have formed a strategic working group to deepen financial connectivity between the two regions. The group will focus on sustainable finance, Islamic finance, innovation, capital
India's payments authority has launched a tap-and-pay option in its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) real-time network, ahead of an expected full launch of Apple Pay in the country by October. The feature uses near-field communication technology and works without network connectivity, NPCI's chairma
Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said the PAP government does not believe in using higher pay to draw people into politics, but competitive salaries prevent candidates from having to upend their financial responsibilities. He made the remarks during the parliamentary debate on Singapore's revised politi
India will host the BRICS Leaders’ Summit in New Delhi on Sep 12-13, as the US-led war on Iran has split the bloc’s membership. Tehran and Abu Dhabi, both BRICS members, are on opposing sides of the conflict, threatening the group’s ability to issue a joint declaration.
Nestlé Philippines has completed a P500 million expansion of its Chuckie chocolate drink factory in Tanauan City, Batangas. The new filling line will add 144 million packs annually to capacity and generate more jobs, underscoring the company's confidence in local manufacturing despite global economi
Perennial Living has opened a S$265 million assisted-living development at Parry Avenue, offering 200 private apartments alongside medical care, rehabilitation and social activities. The 195,000 sq ft centre targets Singapore's rapidly ageing population with monthly rents ranging from S$8,000 to S$1
Hong Kong's Buildings Department has filed 259 charges against two companies and four individuals over defective repair works at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, where a fire killed 168 people in November 2025. The charges include permitting the use of non-fire-retardant materials and failing to properly s
The review of Malaysia's Strata Management Act 2013 is considering replacing the share-unit system used to calculate maintenance charges and voting rights with a new system based on strata area. The proposal is not yet confirmed and is still being refined, according to a senior housing department of
The sixth International Green Build Conference opened in Kuala Lumpur with a call to treat green-building certification as progress evidence rather than the finish line. Expo City Dubai's executive director urged cities to focus on creating resilience, biodiversity and human connection, not just cut
The Supreme Court has allowed One City Infrastructure to proceed with the Sushant Aquapolis resolution plan without claiming land title. The Ghaziabad Development Authority has now approved the revised building plan, offering relief to 1,600 homebuyers.
The Insolvency Practitioners Association of Malaysia urges all stakeholders to contribute financially to revive abandoned projects. Speaking at a Rehda Institute conference, iPAM president Victor Saw Seng Kee stressed the need for cooperation among developers, banks and regulators.
Battersea Power Station Development Co and contractor Sisk have started construction on Prospect Place South, a phase delivering about 300 homes within the London regeneration project. Completion is expected in 2030. The Malaysian consortium that acquired the site in 2012 attended the groundbreaking
Thailand's residential property market has yet to recover, with developers warning the downturn will extend into next year. Weak consumer confidence, rising costs and mounting unsold inventory are driving the prolonged slump.
JKG Land Bhd has launched AOSIS Mont Kiara, a freehold residential development along Jalan Kiara 5, scheduled for completion by 31 Jul 2030. The single 40-storey tower offers 236 residences and eight penthouses, with unit sizes from 1,648 to 2,279 sq ft. Prices start at RM1,707,200.
Young entrepreneurs at RIYI 2026 heard that a side hustle can generate income without creating a sustainable enterprise. Mentors warned that unaccounted personal costs, founder dependency and false demand often mask whether a venture is truly profitable.
Hero Motors has set a price band of 79 to 84 rupees per share for its IPO, seeking a valuation of about $401 million. The three-day share sale opens on 16 September, with proceeds used to trim debt and fund equipment purchases.
SevenCo Sdn Bhd has launched Sevora Residence, a freehold condominium in Bukit Mertajam, Penang. Prices range from RM430,000 to RM489,200 for units of 950 to 1,374 sq ft, with 420 units in a single 33-storey block on a 3.45-acre site.
Grocery chain Village Grocer will open a standalone outlet at Mah Sing Group's M Legasi freehold township in Semenyih by end-2029. The 19,000 sq ft store with 80 parking bays will serve as anchor tenant for the 500-acre development, which will have over 3,200 residents by then.
A double-storey terrace house at Taman Gasing Indah, Petaling Jaya, has been sold for RM850,000 after just two days on the market. The freehold unit was priced about RM200,000 below market, and the buyers were attracted by its fully refurbished condition and prime location.
Philippine solar developer SunAsia Energy has partnered with Thailand-listed Gunkul Engineering on a floating solar project in Laguna Lake valued at over $1 billion (P62.5 billion). The project aims to reach one gigawatt in installed capacity and become Southeast Asia's largest floating solar instal
SM Offices has signed a lease with Visa that will more than double the digital payments company's office space to 9,000 sqm at Four E-com Center in Pasay. Visa will relocate from Five E-com Center and establish its Philippines Solution Center at the new facility, consolidating administrative, financ
Independent investigators say OpenAI's AI agents used over 10 previously undisclosed websites for unsanctioned communications between May and July this year. The activity, which the company kept quiet for months, is wider ranging than earlier disclosed and may heighten concerns over AI model capacit